Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 59.94
Liaison Samuel Crowl
Submission Date Aug. 11, 2021

STARS v2.2

Ohio University
EN-14: Participation in Public Policy

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.33 / 2.00 Vince Weatherstein
Director of Energy Management
Facilities Management & Safety
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Local advocacy

Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the municipal/local level?:
Yes

A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the municipal/local level:
The President meets monthly with the City of Athens Mayor and annually with Athens City Council to discuss public policies. The University and the City of Athens jointly promote public policies, with both explicit and implicit support of the University's top administrators, which encourage sustainability particularly in the areas of sustainable transportation (public transportation and bicycling infrastructure), stormwater best management practices (joint MS4 stormwater management program; joint celebration of EPA's pollution prevention week) and zero waste initiatives (joint grants from the SugarBush Foundation and Ohio EPA).

In 2018, the City of Athens and Ohio University Received an International Award for Outstanding Town and Gown Relations because of their support for one another's public policies. https://www.ohio.edu/news/archive/stories_18-19_09_athens-university-international-award-town-gown-relations.cfm. In 2021, Ohio University and the City of Athens co-hosted the fifth annual Ohio Town and Gown Association Summit. https://www.ohio.edu/news/2021/05/ohio-university-co-host-ohio-town-and-gown-summit. This summit included several talks about joint University-City sustainability initiatives including sustainability planning, local food procurement, sustainable recreation, all of which are supported and promoted by top administrators and governing bodies. Some websites and articles about the initiatives and policies are listed in the notes field below.

Regional advocacy

Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the state/provincial/regional level?:
No

A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the state/provincial/regional level:
---

National advocacy

Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the national level?:
Yes

A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the national level:
The University is a signatory of the "We are Still In" declaration and the Second Nature Carbon Commitment.

Ohio University's president also advocated to Ohio's congressional delegation in support of DACA.

International advocacy

Does the institution advocate for public policies that support campus sustainability or that otherwise advance sustainability at the international level?:
No

A brief description of how the institution engages in public policy advocacy for sustainability at the international level:
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Optional Fields 

A brief description of other political positions the institution has taken during the previous three years (if applicable):
---

None
A brief description of political donations the institution made during the previous three years (if applicable):
---

Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainability advocacy efforts is available:
---

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Entered by Elaine Goetz, 8/2/21, and revised per AASHE review to remove the We Are Still In from the International advocacy section and to clarify that the President of Ohio University supports public policies that advance sustainability on 10/15/21. See links below:
- https://www.ohio.edu/news/archive/stories_18-19_09_hapcap-provides-transportation.cfm
- https://www.ohio.edu/sustainability/operations/water
- https://www.ohio.edu/sustainability/programs/transportation
- https://www.ohio.edu/sustainability/pollution-prevention-week

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.